Source: FOOTYMAD
First game in Oz ends in disappointment
One goal was the difference between Celtic and Central Coast Mariners Neil Lennon was full of praise for his players despite losing 1-0 to Central Coast Mariners. Celtic struggled to create clear chances in the first game of their pre-season tour of Australia before falling to an 86th-minute goal from Troy Hearfield after Joe Ledley failed to clear. The closest Celtic came to a goal was in injury time when substitute Gary Hooper had a shot cleared off the line, before a strong penalty claim for handball was dismissed. However, Lennon was satisfied with the way his side dominated possession in the ANZ Stadium in Sydney following their long journey earlier in the week. Lennon left out Thomas Rogne, Kris Commons and Charlie Mulgrew as a precaution after they reported muscle fatigue but handed debuts to Adam Matthews and Kelvin Wilson in defence. The manager was happy with the response of those who played. Lennon said: "The players' condition and the quality, particularly second half, it was a remarkable performance when you consider the week they've been through. They've been travelling all the way over on Tuesday and Wednesday and then one day's training, played very, very well second half and controlled the game. I thought they scored with their one shot on target but overall I'm delighted with the performance." Lennon praised Mariners left-back Josh Rose and centre-back Patrick Zwaanswijk for their displays, but he was denied the chance to see potential transfer target Mustafa Amini after the teenage midfielder missed out with a groin injury. Central Coast head coach Graham Arnold was overjoyed with claiming the scalp of the Scottish Cup winners. Arnold said: "I thought our defensive structure was again good, although we were rusty in our execution in the final third. Overall I thought we played well. It's the first time the boys have played in this stadium, and to play a powerhouse side like Celtic was fantastic for them. They don't have their history for no reason. They're a top side, with some outstanding players. It's their first game, so we played them at the best time in their tour. It was a great chance to see Australian players test themselves against that type of opposition." Local police expressed disappointment with the behaviour of a minority of the 17,000 crowd. New South Wales Police said that nine men and two women had been arrested after "jumping the fence in an attempt to invade the pitch". Police added that 47 people had been refused entry because of drunkenness and 27 people had been ejected for the same reason. One man was charged with assaulting police while another man was charged with assault.
